Status message

There is a crisis of counsel in California. The state has the largest immigrant population in the country—and the greatest need for more pro bono immigration representation. The problem is getting worse as many of the unaccompanied children crossing the border have come to Southern California. The region is home to seven detention centers, where representation rates are very low—sometimes even lower than the national rate of 20 percent.

Community legal service providers in California want to see a public defender model for detained immigrants similar to the one in New York City. As more vulnerable immigrants enter California—some of them children—leaders of the bar and the judiciary, law schools, and the NGO community need to work together to fill gaps in representation.

Loyola Law School Los Angeles, UCLA School of Law, UC Irvine School of Law, the Los Angeles Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs and Human Rights First are teaming up to tackle this issue. We invite you to attend Crisis of Counsel: Redoubling Efforts to Address Representation Gaps Facing Immigrants, which will bring together key local, state, and national stakeholders to discuss this problem and brainstorm solutions.

Event Details

This event is free and open to the public. However, there is limited space available so please reserve a seat now to guarantee your attendance. Breakfast and lunch are complimentary for all pre-registered conference attendees.

This program has been approved for 6.5 hours of MCLE credit for attorneys licensed in the State of California. There is no charge for the MCLE credit, but you must be pre-registered in order to receive this credit. Please note that we are not able to offer MCLE credit for attorneys licensed in any other state at this time.

The RSVP portal has closed for this event. Please contact Jennifer Rizzo at RizzoJ@humanrightsfirst.org for further information.

Course Materials

Please note that all course materials are free of charge and can now be accessed online. They have been uploaded to this webpage and can be downloaded by clicking on the links below. There are 8 reports associated with this all-day educational symposium. You will not be given any hard copies at the event, so if you wish to have a hard copy, please print them to bring with you. You will be given a hard copy of a program booklet and agenda when you check in at the event.

PANEL 1Los Angeles' Immigrant Population and Legal Representation Gaps -- The Community and the Courts

This panel provides an overview of the immigrant population in the Los Angeles area and its legal representation needs. What impact does representation – or the lack thereof – have on immigrants? And on the courts?

Moderator: Kathleen C. Kim, Loyola Law School Los Angeles, Professor of Law

What are the challenges facing vulnerable immigrant populations as they try to secure representation? What are the representation rates in immigration detention? How can public officials, the courts, and pro bono attorneys address these gaps?

Moderator: Sameer Ashar, University of California Irvine School of Law, Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Immigrant Rights Clinic

Remarks by the Honorable Jacqueline H. Nguyen, U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

1:30 pm

PANEL 3Increasing Representation through Pro Bono, Non-Profit, and Other Models

What representation models could be replicated or expanded? What steps have been taken in other parts of the country—and at the federal level— to provide legal representation for immigrants in immigration court proceedings?

Moderator: Ingrid V. Eagly, UCLA School of Law, Assistant Professor of Law

What additional stakeholders could play a role? What greater roles can pro bono volunteer attorneys play? What additional steps could governments at every level—federal, state, and local government take?

Moderator: Kevin Lapp, Loyola Law School Los Angeles, Associate Professor of Law

Panelists:

David Lash, O’Melveny & Myers LLP, Managing Counsel of Public Interest and Pro Bono Services, and Board Member of the Association of Pro Bono Counsel (APBCo)